A commentary vpon the Epistles of Saint Paul to Philemon, and to the Hebrewes together with a compendious explication of the second and third Epistles of Saint Iohn. By VVilliam Iones of East Bergholt in Suffolke, Dr. in Divinity, and sometimes one of the fellowes of the foundation of Emmanuel Colledge in Cambridge.

VERSE 11.

THE studie is commended to us in these words.

He doth not say, goe to heaven, thinke on this rest now and then, at leasure talke of it: but let us study, labour, &c.

He doth not say, study ye, but us. S. Paul himselfe must be a Stu∣dent in this businesse.

Not loiter, but study and labour: not to take a view of this rest, but to enter.

Not simply say, into any rest, but, into that rest, that noble, wor∣thy, famous, and renowned rest, spoken of before, where we shall rest with God, his Angels and Saints for ever. There be rests in this world; many soft pillowes, feather-beds, and beds of dowlne to rest our selves upon: many pleasant Orchards, and Gardens, faire and beautifull houses, wherein we may rest; but nothing comparable to that rest, the bosome of Abraham, where the soule of Lazarus resteth

We must not thinke to goe to heaven without study, bare wish∣ing will not serve the turne. It is not enough to say with Baalam, O that my soule might dye the death of the righteous, and my last end be like his, Num. 23.10. We must first studie to live the life of the righteous. It is not sufficient to say, oh that I were in heaven, but we must study to goe to heaven. Now in all studying these things must concurre.

1 There must be the party that studieth, and that is every Chri∣stian: high and lowe, rich and poore, of what estate or condition so ever. The King and the subject, the Ministers and their people, the Master and the servant, the Father and the childe, the Husband and the Wife, the Merchant and the clothyer, the Gentleman and the Yeoman, the Divines, Lawyers, Physitians, Husbandmen, &c. all must study to enter into this rest.

2 There must be a closet, or a place to study in, that is, the cham∣ber of our owne hearts.* 1.1 Enter into thy closet, sayes. CHRIST. We must goe often into the chamber of our owne hearts, call our selves to an account, examine what sinnes we have, what courses wee take, whether wee bee in regia via or not, that leadeth to heaven.

3 There must bee a booke to study on: every Student must have his bookes. There can be no workeman without his tooles: nor no Scholler without a library. Now the LORD will not trouble us with many bookes: as CHRIST sayd, one thing is neces∣sary: So one booke is necessary, the booke of bookes, the sacred booke of holy Scriptures. Let us study that throughly, and learne the way to heaven.

4 There must bee a light to study by: no man can study in the darke; either he must have day light, or candle light. The light whereby wee study is the light of GODS Spirit, who must en∣lighten our eyes, that we may see the wonders of GODS Lawes, and direct us to this heavenly rest. Let us therefore pray to GOD, that His Spirit may be with us in all our study: as Acts 8.31. Lord take not thy Holy Spirit from mee: let him accompany mee con∣tinually.

5 There must bee diligence in study: every Student must be di∣ligent. Learning is not gotten without paines. The students in the Vniversity study day and night: So doe the Lawyers at Innes of Court, if they aspire to any fame in the Law. So we that be Chri∣stians, must bee diligent and painefull in our study, 2 Pet. 1.10. use all diligence.

We must not study by fits, a start and away, but we must lie at it, if by any meanes we may come to this rest.

6 There must be a time to study in. Now this time is the terme of our life: from infancy to old age, from the cradle to the grave, so farre as is possible. Remember thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth. Wherewithall shall a young man clense his wayes?* 1.2 Psalm. 119.9. A young man said of the tenne Commandements, all these have I kept from my youth upwards, Mark. 10. Young men may die in the flower of their yeeres, as Absalom did: therefore let young men even in the flourishing time of youth study to enter into this rest.

And let old men likewise study it. In matters concerning the world there bee emeriti milites: a man at sixtie yeares of age is ex∣empted from warfare: aptissima arma senectutis, artes exercitatio∣nes{que} virtutum.

The Levits were priviledged from the service of the Temple at fifty, and some Schollers are so old, that they can studie no longer: not so here, wee must all studie so long as we live, yea in the time of old age: hic opus est animo magis, quàm corpore: 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. Cato learned Greeke when he was eighty yeeres old: 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. Solon. So though we be fifty, sixty, eighty, a hundred yeeres old, yet we must alwayes be stu∣dying to enter into this rest.

And it is worth our studie.

1. We shall rest from sinne: here we sinne daily, the best of us all: the just man falls seven times a day. Sinne makes the godly to cry out, like tyred porters, ô miserable men that we are, who shall ease us of this burden? Then we shall be like the Angels in heaven, and sin no more.

2. Wee shall rest from the workes of our calling. The Mer∣chant shall bee no more tossed upon the Sea: the clothier bee no more riding up and downe for Wooll, nor in the sale of clothes. The magistrate shall be no longer molested with hearing of causes from morning to night, as Moses was. The Father no more ca∣ring for his Children, &c. we shall have all things without care and labour. O happy rest! let us study for it.

3. Wee shall rest from all griefe, paine and misery. No more sicknesse, crying and weeping: all teares shall then bee wiped from our eyes. Oh blessed rest! who would not study for it? Notwith∣standing it is a wonder to see, how this study is neglected. We stu∣dy to get money, to hoord up gold and silver, to buy houses and purchase lands. Some will studie to get to great preferment; how to climbe to this or that office; but the maine studie of all is set aside.

What advantageth it a man to winne the whole world and loose his owne soule? therefore especially study to enter into this rest, where our soules and bodies shall remaine in happines for ever. One Pamb. was studying the first Verse of the thirtie ninth Psal. 19. yeeres, and yet studied it not enough. We must be studying this lesson, to enter into this blessed rest, the terme of our whole life, and yet all little enough: we must studie, as they that feare to bee depri∣ved of a thing, Verse 1. If you are afraid to be deprived of your house and land by some false pretended title, you will study hard to defend your selves: even so doe you study for heaven; that yee be not defeated of this rest.

Let us study earnestly to enter into his rest, that when the few and evill dayes of our Pilgrimage bee ended, wee may rest with Christ in the world to come. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, sayes Chrys. and without, wee cannot be saved: yet that alone is not sufficient, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. If they could not get earth without much dili∣gence, how shall we heaven? Especially 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, indifferenter ac socorditer.

1. Reason or spurre to prick us on to this heavenly and earnest

study and meditation, is taken from a terrible example: as good men as we in outward appearance have fallen from this rest; there∣fore let us take heede that the like happen not to us.

If you fall, as they did, you shall sinke into the same bottom∣lesse pitt, that they have done: pares in peccato shall be pares in sup∣plicio. Why should God spare us more than them? We are his peo∣ple: So they. We sit in the lap of the Church: So they. We have the preaching of the Gospell: So they, Verse 2. We the Sacra∣ments: So they. They were baptized in the red Sea, they eate of the same spirituall meat and they did all drinke the same spirituall drinke, 1 Cor. 10.34. Therefore if we be guiltie of the like sinne, we must looke for the like punishment.

The ancient Israelites went very farre towards the land of Ca∣naan. In many things obedient to the voice of God, they journyed and stayed at his appointment; they had sent spies that viewed the Country. No doubt, many of them were in fight of it, they were on the borders, setting a foot on it, yet because they were incredu∣lous, stubborne, rebellious, and disobedient to God, they were de∣stroyed in the wildernesse, and so came short of that rest: both of the land of Canaan, the figure of this rest, and some of them, it is to bee feared, of heaven too prefigured by it: they came, saies Saint Chrys. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉: and there, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. Let us therefore take heede it be not so with us. Would it not grieve you that bee Merchants to see a ship fraught with rich mer∣chandise miscarry in the haven? Alasse, hath it passed the raging waves, blustering windes, terrible tempests, so many miles on the Sea, and is it cast away in the haven? what a pittifull thing is this? So wee may begin well, goe out of Sodome with Lots wife, follow God a great while, as they did in the wildernesse, some tenne, twen∣tie, thirtie or fortie yeeres, yet be banished out of the kingdome of heaven. Therefore let us not flatter our selves in our faire begin∣nings, but let us runne the wayes of Gods Commandements to the end: forget the things that are behind, but presse on to the marke that is before: though as old disciples as Mnason, yet let us study this to our dying day, how to enter into this rest.

It is something to beginne well, to goe towards heaven; but that is not all. Lots wife went out of Sodome, Demas once embra∣ced Christ.

If thou goest to London, you will not stay at Romford, but goe till thou comest to that famous city. Therefore let us all look to our selves: as we have begunne, so let us proceede, and never cease to our dying day.* 1.3 I forget the things that are behinde and fol∣low hard to the marke. Let us not stand bragging what wee have beene, what we have done, how many miles we have gone towards heaven: but let us runne the wayes of GODS Commandements to the end, as David. Those that are travellours are subject to fal∣ling: you are travelling to the heavenly Ierusalem; therfore be not secure, but take paines in the rowing of the ship of your soules to the haven of eternall rest.

〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, into the same example. Vivitur legibus, non exemplis, all examples are not to bee followed, Phil. 3.17. There be exem∣pla imitabilia, & declinabilia. If any good examples be set before your eyes, follow them: The faith of Abraham, the uprightnesse of Noah, the sincerity of David, the patience of Iob, the constan∣cy of Paul, the humility of the blessed Virgin Mary, &c. But if bad examples, follow not them: follow not Noah in his drunken∣nesse, David in his adulterie and murder, Peter in his denyall, nor the Israelites in their obstinacie and disobedience to GOD in the Wildernesse, for the which they were excluded out of the land of rest. Away with those naughty examples of Lots Wife, Absa∣lom, Iesabel, Ananias and Saphira, &c. Come out sayes God, of Babylon. Let us not follow the wicked in their wickednesse, least wee follow them to hell. Let us believe God and his Word, let us walke in an holy obedience to all his Commandements: then be∣lieving in Christ and bringing forth the fruits of a true and lively faith, when the reprobate shall bee in hell with the rich glutton, wishing for a drop of water to coole their tongues; we shall bee in Abrahams bosome, and rest from all sorrow for evermore.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Matth. 6.6.
• * 1.2

  Eccles. 12.1.
• * 1.3

  Phil. 3.13.